Giants' 'D' fired up over facing Vick

The law of the NFL jungle says if you can play, you're not hurt. But that doesn't mean Eagles quarterback Michael Vick won't be vulnerable when starts against the Giants on Sunday after suffering a concussion last week in Atlanta.

Vick practiced Thursday and Friday and has declared himself ready to go.

"There's no reason to think that I won't play on Sunday," Vick said. "I've had two good days of practice. I'm optimistic I'll be able to go out there and very excited to play."

"If he's OK on game day, then he plays on game day," Eagles coach Andy Reid said

As dangerous as the mercurial Vick can be to opposing defenses, his presence has the Giants' defensive line fired up.

"He's going to be pretty vulnerable,'' defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul said Friday. "The whole defensive line, we're going to get after him. If you want to play, you play. No matter if Vick is in or the second-string quarterback, we're going to execute and play great football and dominate the Philadelphia Eagles' line . . . We're going to get after him. If it takes all 11 to get to him, we're going to get to him.''

In two games this season, Vick has been sacked only three times, but he has been hit plenty more. Because he's prone to scrambling, Vick already has 17 carries for 122 yards rushing, and when you combine that number with the hits he has received while getting off a pass, the Eagles' quarterback has been banged 33 times.

Although the Giants have a six-game losing streak against the Eagles, they managed to sack Vick three times in each game last season, and they believe they can get to him again.

"Hits on the quarterback are cumulative, and so when you get the opportunity to hit the quarterback early and often, you want to take advantage of it,'' defensive tackle Chris Canty said. "It definitely is going to take its effect throughout the course of the game.''

One school of thought holds that Vick will try to stay in the pocket more to protect himself rather than exposing himself to open-field hits while scrambling. But Canty isn't sure that leopard can change his spots.

"I don't think he's going to change the way he plays,'' Canty said. "He's a very versatile player, and those are his strengths. He's going to put a lot of pressure on the secondary. That's the type of player he is. It is what it is.''

If Vick does try to rein in his scrambling, the Giants' defensive linemen would welcome a stationary target in place of the moving target they usually have to chase down.

"We want him to stay in the pocket,'' Pierre-Paul said. "I'd rather him stay in the pocket than run. If you want to stay in the pocket, we've got something coming for him.''

Considering the implication of that statement, Pierre-Paul smiled and said, "I suggest he run, huh?''

-- With AP